


Oliver Queen: the ones who loved him

by Olicitynowplease (sgcreations)



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-07
Updated: 2015-02-09
Packaged: 2018-03-06 13:24:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3136043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sgcreations/pseuds/Olicitynowplease
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Three part fic, Oliver Queen's Goodbye, Death and Return</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Oliver Queen's Goodbye

“Are you sure about this Oliver?” Oliver returned his best friend’s stare, dipping his head slightly in answer and recognition of his worry. John Diggle sighed, hands on his hips as he looked up at the ceiling as if begging for divine help, it was not first time he had given him that look, and Oliver hoped it was not the last.

Seeing Diggle fail in changing his mind, Laurel blocked his path, her usually neatly pressed light grey suit slightly wrinkled. Her big brown eyes bore into Nyssa who stood by the stairs, away from the rest of them. “Don’t do this Ollie; please” Oliver let her tear stained face rest on his chest as she put her arms around him, “Please… I lost Sara because of them; I can’t lose you too… I love you Oliver please.”

“I’m sorry Laurel… ” he disentangled himself from her embrace taking another step towards his destination.

Next he looked to Roy; he could see the anger on the young man’s face, justified anger. He had told him they were a team that he was his partner, but he was leaving without him. Roy did not ask him if he was sure about his decision like Diggle, or tell him not to go like Laurel. Instead he stood with his arms crossing, anger radiating off of him, if Oliver was standing closer he may have tried to punch him. He wanted to go over to him, say something but the quick forceful tapping of the keyboard drew him to the one person he did not have the heart to say goodbye to.

For a moment he watched her blonde pony tail sway slightly as her head turned to each of the screens, her silver earrings glinting softly in the dim light. He stopped behind her, it was not until he placed his bow down beside her keyboard she realised how close he had gotten. He watched her shoulders tense, for a moment he wasn’t certain she would turn around to face him but she was too brave, too stubborn and far too strong not to. When she stood, only inches separating them, though she stood toe to toe to him he did not miss the way her arms wrapped around herself, as if trying to hold herself together.

“Felicity…” Oliver raised his hand to her shoulder as if to comfort her, “Don’t” her voice barely a whisper, her eyes watering slightly, but she would not cry, not yet, not when he needed her to be strong. Oliver let his arm fall, his eyes tracking the emotions flashing across her face.

“I won’t ask you to stay; I know you think you need to do this, that it’s what you have to do to keep the city safe. Which by the way makes no sense because the city isn’t safe if you’re not here, so in fact leaving would probably put the city in more danger. Especially with the number of psychos who seem to think the best place to enact their evil plans is in the city that has their own hero. Which means they’re either really stupid or they really want to get caught or… I’m rambling again aren’t I?” Felicity took a deep breath, a ghost of a smile tilted Oliver’s lips, “What I’m trying to say is… I understand why you need to do this, but the city needs you… I need you… so do whatever it is you need to do but just make sure you come back.”

“I promised you that you would never lose me, I intend to keep my promise… I love you Felicity Meghan Smoak” Felicity closed her eyes, how he managed to put such force and emotion in that one word she did not know. She felt his hand on her face, cupping her cheek, his thumb tracing her bottom lip. She opened her eyes to find him standing even closer, their bodies just touching. “Oliver, I lo…”

“No” his thumb pressed against her lips, stopping her from saying the words she should have said that night in the mansion all those months ago. “Don’t say it.”

“Why not?”

“Because if you do I don’t know if I’ll have the strength to leave.” Felicity let him pull her closer, their lips softly touching, “When you return maybe…”

“Not maybe, no more maybes not between us”, he kissed her one more time before taking a deep breath. Picking up his bow Oliver forced himself to walk away from them all, from her. He did not allow himself to look back, not even when he heard her soft sobs break the silence he’d left in his wake.


	2. Oliver Queen is dead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the ones that loved Oliver Queen find out he is dead.

When Malcolm Merlyn announced Oliver Queen was dead Felicity refused to believe him, Malcolm was a lying, cold hearted manipulating murderer who treated his own child like a puppet, pulling her strings for his own amusement. So when he delivered his news, she turned on her heels, calmly walked down to the arrow cave, sat in front of her screen and began her search for Oliver Queen. Days passed, her eyes glued to the screen, only moving from her seat to sleep and eat, and that only when Diggle or Roy threatened to physically remove her from the cave. But she did not go home, she could not go home. Instead she slept in Oliver’s bed, with his scent wrapped around her. For a while she’d close her eyes and trick herself into believing he was there with her, holding her, telling her he loved her and that she would never loss him.

Diggle was the first to sit down beside her, he tried to explain, he tried to explain Oliver was gone. Not that she hadn’t noticed the way his eyes lingered on Oliver’s work station, or the way he’d look towards the practice mats, Oliver’s name on his lips as if he were about to tell him something important. The way he’d stop himself just in time, closing his eyes, clenching his fists as if trying to hold in the pain. The pain of losing not only his best friend but another brother, someone he’d promised to protect.

Roy came to her next, sitting beside her in utter silence, after hours of nothing he said five words that almost broke her, “Oliver’s gone… he left us.” Pain, misery and despair laced through his voice. It was the first time he had said his name since they’d heard the news, the first time he’d allowed anyone to see how much the loss of not only his hero and mentor but his friend had truly affected him.

When she would not listen to either of them, Lyla with Sara in her hands paid her a visit. She tried to coerce her away from the monitors, away from the foundry but they didn’t understand. None of them did. Oliver Queen was not dead, he could not be dead, why could they not understand that? Why could they not understand that he was lost, that he needed them… he needed her to help him find his way back home?

Laurel had been the last to come to the foundry. No one had told her, no one had explained. She’d come down to find her friend, only to be told he was no longer with them. She’d screamed and shouted, asking again and again why they’d done nothing to stop him, why they’d let him walk to his own execution. But how could they possibly tell her? So instead they’d endured her screams and rants until her throat was hoarse. It was their fault Oliver was dead.

When she finally left the foundry, instead of going home she took a seat at what had now become their usual table at the club. She was not sure when Roy had joined her, but when she looked up from her empty glass there he was with a drink of his own and a bruise beginning to take form on the side of his face. “I never told him” her words almost lost in the music. “Told him what blondie?” His voice was gentle as he moved closer to her. “I never told him I loved him” her eyes began to water but she did not cry. If she allowed even one tear to seep through she was not sure she would ever be able to stop. It felt as if the world was closing in around her, as if her heart was shattering into a thousand pieces, she left without hearing Roy’s reply, she could not breath, she felt as if she were suffocating.

She staggered out of the nightclub and around the corner, leaning back against the hard brick wall. She wrapped her arms around herself trying to bring herself back under control but nothing was working, nothing was helping. When she was ready to give in to the despair, she felt cold hands on her cheek and shoulder, “It’s okay, everything is okay… I need you to count to ten with me. Can you do that?” She tried to nod her head but she did not know if she was successful, it did not matter, as the stranger counted she counted along, “One.”

“One” she repeated an image of Oliver with a bullet ridden laptop in his hands racing through her mind.

“Two”

“Two” Oliver with his hand on her cheek, telling her she would always be his girl.

“Three”

“Three” Oliver holding her in front of him, promising her she would never lose him.

“Four”

“Four” Oliver giving her one of him small sad smiles as she placed the cup of coffee while whispering the word one on the desk in front of him.

“Five.”

“Five.” Oliver standing on the tree branch with his bow in hand ready to swing down and save her.

“Six.”

“Six.” Oliver wearing his mask, asking her how he looked.

“Seven.”

“Seven.” Oliver sitting on the floor, alone and in darkness.

“Eight.”

“Eight.” Oliver standing on the beach in front of her, bruised and battered, but with a smile on his face as she questioned his confession.

“Nine.”

“Nine.” Oliver standing in front of her apologising, telling her he needed her, he relied on her.

“Ten.”

“Ten.” Oliver Queen saying the words I love you.

Holding onto those three words, she opened her eyes to find herself looking into the concerned filled eyes of Thea Queen. “Better?”

“Yes… Thanks…” Felicity moved away from the wall intent on walking to the back entrance of the lair, but Thea’s next few words stopped her. “Have you heard from Oliver?”

She felt as if her world was closing in on her again, instead bracing herself, she turned back to face Thea, a pleasant smile plastered on her face. “Oliver’s fine, he had to leave town on some business, but he’ll be back soon.”

“Okay… you know you’re not what I expected.”

“What did you expect?”

“It just… the way Ollie talked about you…”

“He talked about me?”

“Yhe, I mean he didn’t say much…”

“…. When does he ever… sorry” Felicity interrupted waving for her to continue, “… but when he did talk about you he’d get this look on his face… like… like he couldn’t imagine his life without you.”

“That’s because he needs my IT skills, you should see him sitting in front of a laptop sometimes… he’s like a lost puppy…” Felicity smiled as Thea laughed, “I see now why he likes you so much. If Oliver contacts you, will you tell him to give me a call?”

“Of course” Felicity kept the smile on her face until she was out of sight. She didn’t believe her; she could see it in Thea’s eyes, but there was nothing Felicity could do. Taking a deep breath, she straightened her glasses, tightening her ponytail and she made her way down to the basement.

Oliver Queen was out there, and she intended to bring him home.


	3. Oliver Queen is alive

Felicity ran down the foundry steps, her tablet in hand. She ran past the glass cases, her eyes on the monitor. It wasn’t until she had the team on the com she realised something was wrong. She turned her chair slowly, coming to her feet. His suit was gone. Oliver Queen’s suit was gone.  
*  
Roy released the arrow, another of Brick’s men falling to his knees. Fallen bodies littered the street, some unconscious some no doubt dead. Releasing another arrow he helped one of the fallen to his feet, pushing him away from the fight. That was when he saw it. A green arrow. Oliver Queen’s green arrow.  
*  
Laurel threw open the restaurant door, families hid behind the counter as two of Brick’s men tore the place apart. Swinging her staff she took one man out easily enough, but unfortunately she’d lost the element of surprise. The second man was too quick, and she was too slow, he shoved her back, her head hitting the counter. His hands around her neck she felt consciousness slipping away. That’s when he saved her. Oliver Queen saved her.  
*  
Diggle fought on the front lines, residents of the Glades behind him, ready to fight for their home, ready to die for their home. But they were not soldiers, and this was not a war they could win on their own. For every man of Brick’s they put down, a dozen of theirs were injured. Disarming the man in front of him and taking out another he almost missed it. He almost missed the arrow launching over their heads and a man swinging down to the front. He was alive. Oliver Queen was alive.  
*  
The police were back in the Glades, Brick was on his way to prison, the lost evidence had been recovered and most of the Glades were still standing. But none of that mattered. The only thing that mattered in that moment was that he was alive.  
She sat by her monitors watching the police place brick in the car and that’s when she heard it, his confident and steady footsteps echoing through the foundry. She didn’t remember leaving her seat or running.   
He was alive.   
One moment she was watching the news and the next her arms were around his neck and his around her waist. She ran her hands through his short blonde hair as he lifted her off of the ground with her head buried in the crook of his neck. She felt his hand running through her hair as he whispered in her ear, I’m alive, I’m okay, everything is okay.  
He was alive.  
When her mind caught up with her actions Felicity slowly let him go. He turned to the others who had followed him down, each looking bruised and battered but alive. Felicity hugged each of them, checking for injuries, fusing over the smallest wound. She needed to keep her hands busy while she sorted through her emotions. She bandaged the last of Laurel’s wounds while Roy and Diggle grilled Oliver about what had happened to him.   
He was alive.  
One by one the others left, with a promise to talk soon, especially with Laurel whose activities he still refused to support or allow, not that it was his choice.  
He was alive.  
When he heard the door close behind Laurel he turned to find Felicity watching him, as if she couldn’t quite believe he was real. “I dreamed of you.”  
“What?”  
“When I was… hurt I dreamed of you, of staying here, staying with you, choosing you. Returning to you was what kept me alive.”  
“Oliver…”  
“I love you Felicity”  
“I don’t want to be a woman love. I don’t want to be the reason you fight to live.” She was angry, no not angry she was furious, “You told me you couldn’t be Oliver Queen and the Arrow… “  
“Felicity, I…”  
“No, don’t, please don’t, I need to say this. You told me you couldn’t be both and you chose the Arrow. But it wasn’t the arrow I mourned, it was Oliver Queen. The man you still don’t think is worth saving, the man you think you can’t be, the man you think died on that Island five years ago. You need to learn to live for yourself, for Oliver Queen, not me, not Laurel not Thea, for yourself. You are choosing to forsake a part of yourself and until you can come to terms with the fact that you are Oliver Queen and the Arrow, we can’t… I can’t do this.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“Thinking that I lost you almost broke me. I am a part of this team and I will continue to be a part of this team but me and you, whatever we are I can’t keep doing it, not like this, not until you figure out who you are. Who you want to be.” He wanted to reach out and wipe away the tears she could no longer hold in but he forced himself not to move, he forced himself not to run after her when she left. He told himself that whatever had happened was for the best, but that didn’t stop the pain he felt watching her leave. Lose and fatigue weighted at him. He was alive, but why then did he feel so dead inside?


End file.
